Why casting 'most gorgeous' Love Actually character was actually ...
Love Actually boasts one of the most star-studded casts of all time, but one particular role was actually very difficult to get right.
The Richard Curtis flick, starring Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Emma Thompson, Andrew Lincoln, Bill Nighy, Liam Neeson and Martine McCutcheon, first hit the big screen on November 14, 2003 – and recently turned 20.
Despite some divisive feelings about the festive movie, it has remained a Christmas staple ever since.
Casting director Fiona Weir, who worked alongside the late Mary Selway on the movie, lifted the lid on the star-studded line-up in a chat with Metro.co.uk, confessing that some of the parts took a while to slot in – including that bittersweet office romance.
When asked about casting the movie, Fiona told us: ‘The easiest was obviously Hugh Grant. But also, Bill Nighy as Billy Mack, the minute we read that part, Mary and I were like, it has to be Bill. Richard didn’t know Bill so well then, so it was lovely that he agreed with us.
‘Interestingly, Rodrigo Santoro’s part was a tricky one. He had to be someone that Laura Linney had been working with, she’d observed him for a while, he was a lovely bloke, an open bloke.
‘We considered all sorts of gorgeous British and American actors for it, but we thought what would actually make it interesting if he was from somewhere further afield, and would be someone that the audience wouldn’t know so well, so they wouldn’t quite know what to expect.
‘It took quite a process to come to Rodrigo but when we found him, Mary and I were adamant he was the guy.
‘We could absolutely see Laura Linney falling in love with him, and him being strangely unreachable from elsewhere but also a really decent and approachable guy.’
If you somehow forgot, Laura Linney played Sarah, who lusted after her colleague, Karl (Rodrigo Santoro) and enjoyed weeks of awkward flirting.
Things came to a head when Sarah took Karl back to her home after their work Christmas party, where things quickly became intimate.
However, their tryst came to an unexpected end when she received an emergency call from her brother, and rushed to his side.
Reflecting on the casting process, Fiona explained that the role of youngster Sam also took a while to perfect, before they were able to find Thomas Brodie-Sangster.
Although we couldn’t imagine anyone else playing the cheeky schoolboy, who went above and beyond to get noticed by his crush, Joanna, she shared that they saw countless children during casting.
‘The hardest part, casting Thomas Brodie-Sangster’s part, that was a long process. When we came upon Thomas, that was just glorious,’ she recalled. ‘We met so many kids for [the] role. He actually came into the process quite late on.
‘We’d met loads and loads of kids and then suddenly he was in a show on TV called Station Jim. We were like, “We have to find that kid, where is he?” He came in and he was just really comfortable with the role.’
Spilling the beans on how Thomas impressed Richard, she added: ‘I remember Richard meeting lots of kids and saying, “I first fell in love when I was six. Have you ever been in love?” These kids would look at him [bemused].
‘Whereas Thomas, when Richard said that to him, he was like, “Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.”
‘It’s just those wonderful moments when it just works. You just have to keep going until you find that right kid.’
Excuse us while we rewatch Love Actually for the millionth time.
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